Modern American football has its origins in various games, all known as "football", played at public schools in England in the mid-19th century. By the 1840s, students at Rugby School in England were playing a game in which players were able to pick up the ball and run with it, a sport later known as Rugby football. The game was taken to Canada by British soldiers stationed there and was soon being played at Canadian colleges.

The first football game played between teams representing American colleges was an unfamiliar ancestor of today's College footballl, as it was played under rugby-style Association rules [1]. The game between teams from Rutgers College (now Rutgers University) and the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University) took place on November 6, 1869 at College footballl (now the site of the College Avenue Gymnasium at Rutgers University) in New Brunswick, New Jersey. Rutgers won by a score of 6 "runs" to Princeton's 4.[2][3][4] The 1869 game between Rutgers and Princeton is important in that it is the first documented game of any sport called "football" (which also encompasses the game of "soccer") between two American colleges. It is also notable in that it came a full-two years before a codified rugby game would be played in England. The Princeton/Rutgers game was undoubtedly different from what we today know as American football. Nonetheless it was the forerunner of what evolved into College footballl. Another similar game took place between Rutgers and Columbia University in 1870 and the popularity of intercollegiate competition in football would spread throughout the country.

Betting the NFL preseason

Rule No. 1 in the gamblers' handbook states, "Avoid sports betting on meaningless games."

When you're drowning in a sea of baseball monotony, however, things change. Even a hint of pro football betting can persuade the most disciplined bettor to break a few rules. 

The NFL preseason is around the corner, with a tempting Hall of Fame match kicking off on Sunday. But bettors must stay vigilant. Wagering on NFL exhibition games is an entirely different beast than the regular season. Most fans don't recognize the players on the field because starters get as much action in August as Warcraft fans get on Prom night.

The only certainty about the NFL this time of year is uncertainty – and yet there are some who say betting in August can be a gold mine.

“I actually feel the NFL preseason presents solid profit opportunities for sharp bettors and handicappers,” Sports Expert Steve Merril explains. “My experience has been that the sportsbooks fear the preseason, which is evident by lower limits and massive moves.”

The line moves are attributed to the limited knowledge available regarding playing-time distribution. One team’s top unit out on the field for one more series has an impact on the pointspread. Setting lines in the preseason often is a shot in the dark.

“We base the betting lines mostly on public perception,” Pete Korner, founder of the Sports Club in Las Vegas, says. “It’s very tough to predict, almost a guessing game.”

The preseason is all about figuring out who’s in and for how long.

“It becomes a race between bettors and oddsmakers to find out how long the quarterbacks are going to stay in,” Korner admits. “If a sharp gets the information first, he could exploit an early line. I’m a full believer in moving the line in the preseason if the books find out something late in the week.”

Determining what each team’s motive is can help bettors handicap. To do this you must pay close attention to the philosophies head coaches employ in exhibition play.

“You need to know what a coach is trying to accomplish,” says Covers Expert Bryan Leonard. “Sometimes a new coach will want to instill a winning attitude. Others just want to make sure their starters don’t get hurt."

So how do you distinguish who’s playing scared and who’s playing for keeps?

“Head coaches on the hot seat or new coaches trying to implement a winning attitude usually try harder to win in the preseason,” Merril says.

Cleveland Browns head coach Romeo Crennel fits this criteria. He’s entering his third season as the sideline boss and has yet to lead the Browns to more than six wins.

Cleveland is an enticing bet as well because of the unresolved quarterback situation. General manager Phil Savage sacrificed the Browns’ first-round pick in next year’s draft for Brady Quinn, but the former Notre Dame quarterback hasn’t signed or reported to training camp yet.

Charlie Frye and Derek Anderson split time at QB last season and it looks like either player (or even Quinn) could be the opening-day starter.

“If a team has quarterback depth and the pecking order hasn’t been decided, it’s a big advantage,” Leonard says.

Even in the third week of the preseason when starters generally play the most, the final outcome of the game is in the hands of fringe players. A team's talent, all the way down to the last man on the roster, is something to consider.

The New England Patriots have long been considered one of the deeper teams in the NFL and coach Bill Belichick has said in the past he’s unafraid of stars getting hurt in games with nothing on the line. He shocked his colleagues in 2003 by playing some of his starters on special teams in the preseason.

“We want to have the team ready to play a tough, physical game and preparation has to go into that and I imagine a certain amount of injuries go with it,” Belichick told the Providence Journal in August 2003.

Bettors can only hope to find more teams that share the Pats' business-like approach to the preseason (New England is 17-9-3 against the spread since 2000) and take advantage of teams who detest the exhibition schedule.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.

Mayweather picked to beat De La Hoya
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA -- Golden Boy Oscar De La Hoya and his rival Floyd Mayweather Jr. arrived at the MGM Grand here Wednesday amid the pomp and pandemonium befitting two of the biggest stars in the sport who are about to duke it out for the WBC super welterweight crown this Saturday (Sunday in Manila).

As of Wednesday, MySportsbook.com closed its book with Mayweather a favorite to defeat De La Hoya at -170 (a $100 bet wins $70), while De La Hoya is a +140 underdog (a $100 bet wins $140).

Mayweather arrived at about 11:30 a.m. on a big truck with his face and a big "World's Best Pound-for-Pound" sign scribbled across the vehicle. He was accompanied by his entourage made up of rappers and his training team.

A crowd of close to 3,000 eager fans packed the MGM Grand lobby, with their cameras in tow, all trying to vie for position to get a good angle at Mayweather, who is acknowledged as the world's best fighter pound-for-pound.

Eric Gomez, Golden Boy Promotions vice-president, described the fan turnout as "amazing" and swore he had never seen anything quite like this event.

"The crowd was fantastic. Everybody was just too eager to see the two fighters," said ALA manager Michael Aldeguer, who was among those who waited at the lobby together with his ward Rey "Boom Boom" Bautista and AJ Banal.

De La Hoya made his own grand entrance at the hotel lobby at around 12:30 p.m. accompanied by GBP chief executive officer Richard Schaefer and trainer Freddie Roach.

The same group of fans who trooped to see Mayweather also lingered around to get a close look at De La Hoya, who has been secretly working out at a Las Vegas gym for days after arriving from his main training camp in Puerto Rico.

The golden boy then took part in a closed-door afternoon workout with Bautista and Banal. The two, along with Aldeguer and wife Christine, as well as an HBO crew were the only ones allowed inside the gym.

De La Hoya and Mayweather take part in today's final press conference before the official weigh-in this Friday.

Ring Magazine, the acknowledged bible of boxing, reported in its June 2007 issue that 12 out of 20 boxing experts it interviewed have favored Mayweather to defeat De la Hoya, with only 8 favoring the latter.

But Filipino ring icon Manny Pacquiao said in a recent interview with The Freeman's Emmanuel Villaruel that De La Hoya will win by unanimous decision over Mayweather.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on boxing needs.

• Okur, Brewer lead Jazz past Grizzlies
• Memphis, TN (Basketball Betting) - Mehmet Okur scored 23 points, leading the shorthanded Utah Jazz to a 103-94 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies. Ronnie Brewer scored 21 points for the Jazz, who were playing without Carlos Boozer (qua


• O'Neal, Suns too much for Portland
• Phoenix, AZ (Basketball Betting) - Shaquille O'Neal registered 19 points with a game-high 17 rebounds as Phoenix topped Portland, 102-92, at US Airways Center. Amare Stoudemire had 17 points and nine boards for the Suns, who snappe


• Rockets continue success in Orlando
• Orlando, FL (Basketball Betting) - Yao Ming recorded 22 points and 13 rebounds and Houston once again went to Orlando and left with a victory in a 100-95 decision over the Magic. Tracy McGrady scored 17 points against his former team


• New coach, same result: Thunder lose to Paul, Hornets
• New Orleans, LA (Basketball Betting) - Chris Paul recorded a triple-double with 29 points, 10 rebounds and 16 assists, carrying the New Orleans Hornets to a 109-97 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder and new head coach Scott Brooks. Earlier


• Wade shines as Heat pull away to top Pacers
• Miami, FL (Basketball Betting) - Dwyane Wade continued his brilliant start to the young season as his 38-point, eight-assist effort lifted Miami to a 109-100 victory over the Pacers. Wade, fresh off a 40-point, 11-assist performance, hit 15-


• Richardson leads shorthanded Knicks over Wizards
• New York, NY (Basketball Betting) - Quentin Richardson scored 34 points and pulled down 12 rebounds to pace the shorthanded New York Knicks to a 122-117 win over the Washington Wizards. Richardson went 7-of-13 from three-point range for the


• Toronto C O'Neal has strained left knee
• Toronto, ON (Basketball Betting) - Toronto Raptors center Jermaine O'Neal is listed as day-to-day with a strained left knee, the team announced on Saturday. O'Neal suffered the injury early in the fourth quarter of Friday's 12


• New look Knicks welcome Wizards to MSG
• (Basketball Betting) - The New York Knicks shook up their roster on Friday with an eye on the future, but still have to play Saturday when the struggling Washington Wizards make the short drive up I-95 to face the Knicks at Madison Square Garden.


• Thunderstruck: Carlesimo fired as head coach
• Oklahoma City, OK (Basketball Betting) - The Oklahoma City Thunder have fired head coach P.J. Carlesimo after just 13 games and a league-worst 1-12 record. "This was a very difficult decision to make," said Thunder executive vice president


• Kobe shines, 'Melo struggles as Lakers clobber Nuggets
• Los Angeles, CA (Basketball Betting) - Kobe Bryant scored 29 points to pace the Lakers to their 10th win in 11 games this season, a 104-90 triumph over the Denver Nuggets. Andrew Bynum contributed 13 points and 13 rebounds as Los Angeles